Religion and Medicine: A History of the Encounter Between Humanity's Two Greatest Institutions

by Jeff Levin, Stephen G. Post (Foreword by)

Overview

Though the current political climate might lead one to suspect that religion and medicine make for uncomfortable bedfellows, the two institutions have a long history of alliance. From religious healers and religious hospitals to religiously informed bioethics and research studies on the impact of religious and spiritual beliefs on physical and mental well-being, religion and medicine have encountered one another from antiquity through the present day. In Religion and Medicine, Dr. Jeff Levin outlines this longstanding history and the multifaceted interconnections between these two institutions. The first book to cover the full breadth of this subject, it documents religion-medicine alliances across religious traditions, throughout the world, and over the course of history. Levin summarizes a wide range of material in the most comprehensive introduction to this emerging field of scholarship to date.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780190867355
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	05/14/2020
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	344
Sales rank:	982,961
Product dimensions:	9.30(w) x 6.30(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

Dr. Jeff Levin, an epidemiologist and religious scholar, holds a distinguished chair at Baylor University, where he is University Professor of Epidemiology and Population Health, Professor of Medical Humanities, and Director of the Program on Religion and Population Health at the Institute for Studies of Religion. He also serves as Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Duke University School of Medicine, and as an Affiliated Member of the Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy at Baylor College of Medicine. He is a member of the Society for Epidemiologic Research, the International Epidemiological Association, the American College of Epidemiology, and the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, and is a fellow of the Gerontological Society of America and the International Society for Science and Religion.

Table of Contents

Foreword - by Stephen G. Post

Acknowledgments

Chapter 1. Conflict and Cooperation

Chapter 2. Healers and Healthcare

Chapter 3. Missions and Ministries

Chapter 4. Congregations and Communities

Chapter 5. Scientists and Scholars

Chapter 6. Teaching and Training

Chapter 7. Prescriptions and Proscriptions

Chapter 8. Policies and Programs

Chapter 9. Challenges and Choices

Notes

Index

Editorial Reviews

"This book is a remarkable achievement. It reflects a lifetime of research on various intersections of religion and medicine. It is comprehensive, encyclopedic, and attentive to critical issues in multiple fields. Indeed, Jeff Levin has an impressive grasp of both humanistic and scientific ways of knowing. Religion and Medicine is an instant classic." — Nathan Carlin, Journal of the American Academy of Religion

"Jeff Levin is without peers when it comes to the literature in this area. His scholarship is impeccable." — Neal Krause, Professor Emeritus, Health Behavior and Health Education, University of Michigan

"A magnificent book, easy to read and encyclopedic in covering the history and current state of affairs in the religion and health world. Highly recommended for anyone in (and outside) of this field. I promise you won't be disappointed." — Harold G. Koenig, M.D, Director of the Center for Spirituality, Theology, and Health, Duke University Medical Center

"Dr. Jeff Levin's Religion and Medicine is perhaps the most profound and balanced overview of the connections between religious faith and human health that has appeared in my lifetime. This is a work of impressive, expansive scholarship. No one is more capable of this discussion than Levin, the pioneer who introduced the term 'the epidemiology of religion' decades ago, and who has devoted his career to research and analysis of this field. This book transcends both sides by engaging actual evidence. It is difficult to overestimate the importance of Levin's approach, because our future may depend on our conclusions about how religion affects health in the broadest sense: the survival of our species." — Larry Dossey, MD, Author of One Mind: How Our Individual Mind Is Part of a Greater Consciousness and Why It Matters

From the Publisher